Lobbyists have been around since there've been people to lobby, but the more money is involved in getting elected, the more acute the problem becomes.

You can't honestly think the billion dollars required to become president doesn't come with strings attached.

Money buys you influence. Don't think advertising is entirely in terms of media. Campaigns need a lot of people involved, and many of those people have to get paid. Modern media just means you need to spend even more money than you did before.